The Colorado man who was killed after an elevator malfunctioned at the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine on Thursday, Oct. 10, has been identified.
Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell identified the victim as 46-year-old Patrick Weier in a press conference shared by Fox 21 News. The incident also resulted in the rescue of 23 others.
Mikesell noted that Weier worked as a mine tour guide. He added that Weier was a resident of Victor near the mine in Cripple Creek and is survived by his 7-year-old son.
The investigation into the incident is ongoing, and officials are still trying to figure out exactly what happened.
“We know at 500 feet is where the issue occurred,” Mikesell said during the press conference. “We know that there was some type of incident with the doors and at that point something went wrong. We don’t know what caused that. We don’t know what happened. All we know is that something occurred at that 500 foot level.”
Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine in Colorado on Oct. 10, 2024.
Arthur H. Trickett-Wile/The Gazette via AP
He also noted that the family that owns the mine ”have done a great job of making it safe” with “very low safety concerns,” and described the incident as a “tragic accident” that can happen when working with “heavy machinery.”
Following the news of Weier’s death, Barbara Manning, the mayor of Victor, told Fox 21 News “that everyone” in Victor “will be in mourning when they realize who it is.” She added that Weier had just obtained his firefighter certification prior to his death.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis shared a separate statement, saying, “Our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the individual lost in this incident.”
Polis added that he was “relieved that 12 of the people trapped” in the mine were “safely rescued,” and thanked the sheriff’s department and other emergency crews for their “swift response and tireless efforts” to get the people out of the mine.
Mikesell previously shared in a press conference on Thursday that a group of 12 people faced “severe danger” when the elevator car they were riding experienced a mechanical issue about 500 feet below the surface. He said four of the 11 people rescued from the first group were treated by paramedics for neck, back and arm injuries.
First responders at Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine on Oct. 10, 2024.
Arthur H. Trickett-Wile/The Gazette via AP
“We don’t know, because of the damage the elevator sustained, whether that would contribute to it failing,” he said.
An additional group of 12, who had been 1,000 feet underground had to be rescued due to the elevator malfunction and waited for approximately six hours in 50-degree temperatures until it was back in operation.
“They all came up very safely, four at a time so we could get them through the surface,” he added. “They’re all in good spirits, we fed them pizza, that’s what they wanted, so there’s a good news story at the end of this.”
